DAYTON–The Port of Columbia Board of Commissioners is seeking interested candidates to fill the District No. 3 position vacated by Fred Crowe. He has served over five years.

"Fred's input on the board was very helpful," said Jennie Dickinson, Executive Director of the Port. "He was a scientist and educator during his career, and had a very measured and thoughtful approach to making important decisions."

In his absence, the Port will seek to fill the position as soon as possible and before the next monthly board meeting on May 13. Anyone seeking the position and lives within District No. 3, are asked to submit Letters of interest and resumes to Jennie Dickinson, Port of Columbia, 1 Port Way, Dayton, WA, 99328, or to [email protected]. Visit http://www.portofcolumbia.org for more information on the Port and its properties, or call the Port at 382-2577 to schedule an appointment with the executive director to learn more about Port activities.

"The Commission's role is to set goals and policies, adopt a comprehensive plan of work, and provide financial oversight," Dickinson.

Washington State RCW 42.12.070 states that the remaining commissioners of the Port District have 90 days to fill the vacant position with a qualified candidate. A qualified candidate must be a registered voter living in the district with the vacancy, which in this case is District 3. (Port Commissioner Districts are the same as County Commissioner Districts.) A map of the commissioner districts is available at the Port's website, which is http://www.portofcolumbia.org. Anyone interested in serving that lives in that district should submit a letter of interest and resume to the Port no later than Friday, May 1. A short list of relevant experiences should be included.

The two other Port commissioners, Chair, Earle Marvin and Dan Aschenbrenner will choose candidates to interview from the applicants. Interviews will be held in a public meeting sometime before the May 13 board meeting. A final decision as to who will serve the remainder of Crowe's six-year term ending December 31, 2021, will be announced at the meeting. The appointed commissioner will run for that position in the November 2021 election.

Dickinson reported the restrictions put forth by Governor Inslee are affecting most of the businesses in the county. Commerce is slower and production is limited, but for some, it hasn't had a critical effect as of yet. Lyons Ferry usually has slower business at this time of year, according to Dickinson, and so the restrictions haven't been a huge hit on them yet.

Three tenants have requested rent deferral to which the commissioners agreed would be allowable for over a six-month period at this time with no interest or late fees charged.

Several community businesses have filed state grant applications through the Port. According to the governor's website, "The Working Washington Small Business Grant, through the Governor's Strategic Reserve Fund and administered by the Washington State Department of Commerce with the help of county economic development organizations. The grants will provide up to $10,000 for small businesses under 10 employees."